...is what makes me want to do something about climate change.
FEAR. Fear, that in 20, 30, or 40 years time, when Little Eco reflects on her lifestyle, and contrasts that with the way we live now, she will hate me for not doing more. Fear, that realistically I have no idea how different her lifestyle will be to that of mine.
LOVE. I want want Little Eco to have the opportunity to experience everything I have. It’s not fair that she will live in a world that that is more challenging or has less than the one I live in. Why should she live in a world without Mountain Pygmy-possums, the Great Barrier Reef, or the Daintree rainforest.
When it comes to conserving threatened species, we follow to the precautionary principle:
‘Where there are threats of serious or irreversible environmental damage, lack of full scientific certainty should not be used as a reason for postponing measures to prevent environmental degradation.’
We also strive to maximise resilience. We imagine worst case scenario and prepare a species to be resilient enough to survive that worst case scenario.
Why do we not afford ourselves the same security? We argue about the effects of climate change while eroding away our resilience. I don't care whether or not climate change is real. Even without climate change we are stuffing up our environment more than enough.
I want Little Eco to be able to look back and know that I tried. I don't care if my small contribution does not make a difference. At least my daughter will not hate me for consuming her future. So i’ll continue to make changes to reduce our family's ecological footprint and greenhouse gas emissions, and I’ll continue to take action to motivate others to do likewise.
Next Saturday 24th October, for International Day of Climate Action, my family and I will be joining in a giant Playdate for the Planet here in Newcastle. Why not join in? See what’s happening in your area, or start your own action.
Show your children you tried.
